Danny Cipriani's agent has rubbished reports linking the former Wasps fly-half with a cross-code switch to football.

The England pivot, who has signed up with the Melbourne Rebels for next season, has been training with three different football clubs, including Tottenham Hotspur and QPR, in recent weeks. The latest club, American franchise Colorado Rapids, published a story on their official website last week titled: "Rugby to soccer?"
A club spokesman went one step further, saying: "He is keen to explore opportunities in soccer in general and with the Rapids in particular."

The move fuelled speculation about his intentions, but his publicist Caroline McAteer told the Daily Mail that her client would be moving to Melbourne later this year.

"He's in regular contact with the Melbourne Rebels coaches and he's going out there by early October ready for pre-season training," she said. "Danny wants to be super, super fit going out to Melbourne. The pressure will be on him out there now because there has been so much fuss made about this move. He has to arrive ready to go - that is why he is training so hard.

"He spent two weeks with Spurs, two weeks with QPR and an English guy he knows who coaches the team in Colorado invited him to join them for training, so he thought he would go. He'll be out there for a week or so, then he's coming back here for a few weeks before going to Australia."

McAteer also admitted that speculation over his dalliance with football was contributing to Cipriani's desire to distance himself from the British press.

"Let's face it, not many in this part of the world have heard of Colorado Rapids. If he was going to sign for an MLS team, I don't think it would be them. But it is not going to happen. He would have to cancel his contract with the Rebels and that's not even an option. He has signed the contract, he is going to Melbourne and he is excited about the move. All these rumours are part of the reason why he wants to go to Australia. He wants to get away from all this."